AP US History

The Age of Expansionism1830-1860

Background

• Territorial expansion• Commercial development• Technological progress• “Young America” – spirit of the

time: positive attitude toward market economy and industrial growth, a more aggressive foreign policy, and a celebration of virtues

Manifest Destiny

• Believe that God had ordained American expansion across the continent

• Led to diplomatic confrontations with Britain and Mexico

Land Acquisitions

• Webster-Ashburton Treaty, 1842• Annexation of Texas, 1845• Oregon dispute settled, 1846• Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 1848• Gadsden Purchase, 1853

Texas Independence• Mexico encouraged American settlement in Texas in the

1820s• Led to problems by 1830s (slavery question, role of

Catholic Church), and Mexico, under Santa Anna, moved to quell independence-minded Texans

• Texans revolted in 1835-1836. Rallying behind losses at the Alamo and Goliad, Texans defeated Mexico at San Jacinto

• General Sam Houston became the first president of the

“Lone Star Republic,” independent until 1845

Texas Annexation

• Jackson, president at time of Independence, steered clear of annexation debate

• President Tyler push for annexation, but Senate voted down the treaty

• President Polk successfully campaigned for the annexation of Texas, official in 1845

The Mexican-American War

• Mexico refused to recognize Rio Grande as Texas border, and refused to sell land to U.S.

• Under Polk’s aggressive expansionist policies, the U.S. declared war on Mexico in 1846

• Under Taylor, Kearney, Fremont, and Scott, the U.S. military quickly prevailed

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 1848

• Mexican cession – most of present day New Mexico, Arizona and California for $15 million

• Recognition of Rio Grande as border• U.S. government assumes American claims

against Mexico• Gasdsen Purchase, 1853, gave U.S. southern

most parts of New Mexico and Arizona (potential southern railroad route)

Internal Expansion• By the 1830s, Americans moved west,

attracted by adventure, prospect of financial gain, and (for the Mormons) religious freedom

• Americans traveled west on the Santa Fe Trail (1820s) and the Oregon Trail (1840s)

• Discovery of gold in California in 1848 led to mass movement westward

Innovation and Expansion• Telegraphs and railroads aided internal

expansion (by the 1840s, railroads replaced canals as primary means of internal transport)

• Railroad and manufacturing led to boom in industry, more jobs, and more immigration

• Agricultural innovations eased farming and led to more settlement

• McCormick’s reaper• Deere’s plow

Native Americans on the Frontier

• In 1834, the national government passed the Indian Intercourse Act, prohibiting settlers from going on Indian land.

• Settlers (and the government) ignored this agreement as economic prospects expanded out west

• Government changed their policies several times in the period beyond the Civil War, stay tuned